thenovelthief Chapter 100
Chapter 100
Translator: Dreamscribe“CEO-nim. This is the list selected through the foundation’s investigation.”
As soon as the Kwangwoon Foundation was established, it began searching for places where our help was desperately needed.
While donations were broadly distributed, we also created a system that selected special students to receive focused scholarships.
Through that investigation, a list was compiled of talented individuals who were in dire need of financial assistance.
“.......”
I looked through the names listed.
At my separate request, the foundation had written detailed profiles for each student.
That way, I could gather information on them and use my intuition.
‘As expected.’
Just as I had anticipated, as the profiles entered my head, a light started to turn on next to each name.
One thing was clear, the people at our foundation were doing excellent work.
In a way, that was only natural.
Especially because I personally selected the employees responsible for creating the list.
‘Start with those who shine the brightest.’
Although I intended to provide support to everyone listed here, I planned to give the best support to the students who showed the strongest light.
Until they became adults and were firmly established.
“Please put the students I’ve marked into the focused support list. As for the others, proceed with the basic support program.”
“Ah, yes. CEO-nim.”
As per my instructions, the foundation found students from various fields and compiled the list.
There were more students in our country needing help than I had expected.
To think that a guy who used to sit in his room playing games was now helping students who desperately needed support.
It’s a deeply moving thought.
I don’t know how far these students will soar with the support they’re receiving, but I truly hope they grow into outstanding individuals who can make a great positive impact on this country.
That was the sole conviction with which I started this foundation.
“.......”
After receiving the list, I looked at Deputy Manager Ahn, who was hesitating.
“Is there something you’d like to say?”
“Ah, well... within the next 24 hours, all of the Deep OTM positions will expire. As you know, they’re products that expire within 72 hours.”
Deep OTM.
A type of gambling-style put option product that pays out if the value of the British currency crashes.
In other words, it’s like a lottery ticket purchased with a premium, and if something really happens, you win a payout.
My intuition immediately pointed to that area.
Naturally, I hesitated because I also knew what it meant.
But my intuition kept indicating that product, so I instructed the employees to track down and gather all of the Deep OTM products currently on the market.
If my intuition was right again, we would gain trillions of won.
But if I was wrong, then conversely, hundreds of billions in premium costs would vanish into thin air.
And there’s one problem.
As Deputy Manager Ahn just mentioned, these OTMs were designed as gambling products from the start, so their expiration periods are extremely short.
There are only 24 hours left now.
If something doesn’t happen within that time, the hundreds of billions we spent will vanish without any return.
Honestly, I’m human too, so I was scared.
Even though I knew my intuition had never been wrong, I always carried that fear.
The anxiety that maybe, just once, it might be wrong.
“Keep monitoring it.”
“......Yes.”
But the dice had already been cast.
***
“Deputy Manager Ahn. What did he say? Did you ask?”
“The OTM?”
“Yeah.”
“He just said to keep watching.”
“He didn’t say anything else?”
“No.”
The team members let out short sighs.
The OTM was one issue, but there were other problems too.
CEO Jung Jin-ho had scattered money everywhere as if Britain would collapse tomorrow.
Including some extremely high-risk products.
Looking at CEO Jung Jin-ho’s investment tendencies so far, he’s always been aggressive like this, but...
“Wasn’t this a bit too much?”
“Yeah. Even when he’s gone for short selling, he’s never placed money on products with such short expiration periods.”
The OTM would expire within 24 hours, and while the other products still had time, it was cutting it close.
Also, even when he did short selling before, there were always a few days of spacing.
But this time, he only invested in quantities that could be liquidated immediately.
What does this mean?
It means that the UK wouldn’t just experience a minor shakeup, but rather that the largest financial crisis in its history would hit the UK market.
When that happens, all stocks would hit their lower limit, and if short selling had been done in advance, you’d make money no matter where you placed your bets.
“But can something like that really happen to the UK in just 24 hours? For things to go the way the CEO-nim wants, there would have to be a flash crash, and there’s no trigger for that, is there?”
Flash crash.
It refers to a situation where a specific stock or market plunges sharply in a very short time, then quickly recovers.
“No. CEO-nim isn’t just aiming for a flash crash effect. Besides, what kind of trigger could even exist in the UK right now?”
“No-deal Brexit?”
“Yeah. It might actually turn into a real no-deal Brexit.”
“But... even if it does become a no-deal Brexit, would the market collapse enough for the OTM to trigger?”
That was true too.
No-deal Brexit.
It would be a shocking event for the UK.
If it actually happened, the UK market would certainly be shaken, but it wouldn’t be devastated to the level of Japan or anything.
The UK stock market is three times the size of Korea’s.
Even bigger than France’s.
If it were anyone else, they’d think the CEO-nim had finally gone mad.
But Department Head Seo, who had observed Jung Jin-ho over the years, thought the opposite.
“What on earth is about to happen in the UK...”
***
Reynold Vale was uncharacteristically shaking his leg nervously.
Finally, the employee he had been waiting for hurriedly entered the room.
“So, what’s the result?”
“We checked again, and it’s already been decided. There will absolutely not be a no-deal Brexit, and the timeline will be extended significantly.”
“Are you sure? Are you saying it’s definitely not a no-deal Brexit?”
“Yes. They said such an extreme decision won’t happen because it wouldn’t just affect the UK but also other European countries. It’s information obtained from inside the EU, so it’s reliable.”
Right. That’s how it should be.
A no-deal Brexit is impossible.
“Then why the hell are those guys...”
The problem was Kwangwoon.
“You said there are 24 hours left until expiration?”
“Yes.”
“Ssshhh...”
In 24 hours, the EU would make an announcement that there would absolutely be no no-deal Brexit and that the negotiation period would be extended.
But does Kwangwoon not believe that information?
They placed a bet that the UK would collapse within 24 hours.
For what possible reason?
“Director, doesn’t this mean Kwangwoon has incorrect information?”
“That’s possible. But think about it. Would the UK economy really collapse just because of a no-deal Brexit?”
“There’d be a big shock, but... not to the extent Kwangwoon’s betting on.”
“Right. That’s what’s driving me crazy right now. What kind of information do they have that makes them so confident?”
He was already bald, and it felt like even more hair was falling out.
There was definitely something going on, but even after mobilizing all of Gold Reagan’s information resources, there was no answer.
“Can’t we just ignore it?”
“Ignore it? Do you know how much we’d have to pay if Kwangwoon’s information is right and the UK stock market really crashes in 24 hours?”
Kwangwoon had scooped up all the OTM they could find.
They had also bought up various other derivative products.
“If Kwangwoon’s prediction turns out to be correct, then not just us at Gold Reagan, but every financial institution that issued those derivatives is screwed. And the stocks we currently hold in the UK will all crash too.”
That’s why Reynold had to make a decision.
Should he just ignore it?
Or should he prepare, like Kwangwoon?
There were only 24 hours left.
If something really was going to happen, it was already late, but this might still be the golden time, where he could lose just one arm and save everything else.
“What about the other financial firms and funds? With Kwangwoon stirring up this much trouble, everyone must know by now, right?”
“Yes. Rumors have already spread rapidly, and the bear funds pulled out long ago. It’s too late to go in with short selling, so they’re at least cutting losses.”
“Those crazy bastards chickened out and pulled out?”
“Bear funds have always been kind of cult-like followers of Kwangwoon, haven’t they? But this move came so suddenly that even they couldn’t follow the position in time. So they chose to run to minimize losses.”
The game of reading the room had begun.
The problem was that even the bear funds, where all the usual lunatics gathered, were the first ones to panic and flee.
Which meant.
“The rest will start pulling out soon, too.”
If even the bear funds, known for throwing in money with no logic, were regaining their senses, then it meant something really serious was going on.
That’s when Reynold made his decision.
“I’m going to report to the higher-ups now, so notify all departments. From now on, pull out or recall all products related to the UK. Also, dump all stocks currently invested in the UK market.”
“B-but if we dump that much volume all at once, we’ll take a big loss...”
“Everyone’s already quietly unwinding their positions. That’s why we need to move faster than they do. If not, all we’ll have left is worthless paper. Move now.”
Only 24 hours remained.
It was tight.
Which meant they had to act fast.
Reynold adjusted his tie neatly to report to the top and let out a deep sigh.
Just what kind of information does Kwangwoon have?
At that moment, a sudden thought crossed his mind.
“But... what if there’s actually nothing at all?”
What if there was no no-deal Brexit, and no real event to shake the UK economy in the next 24 hours? Regardless, everyone had already descended into madness and begun dumping their holdings.
Because the one placing the bet was Kwangwoon.
The shocking investment strategies Kwangwoon had displayed over the years were enough to go down in world history.
“What does it matter now?”
Even if all of this was a fake by Kwangwoon, it didn’t matter.
The event was already happening because of them.
***
Prime Minister Theresa March had extended the negotiation timeline with the EU to solidify her shaky approval ratings.
Many criticized her for it, but it was fine.
If she wrapped up the negotiations well, even if people cursed her now, time would change how they evaluated her.
She would become one of the most memorable figures in British history.
And in a positive way, at that.
“.......”
But she was momentarily at a loss for words as she looked at the chart in front of her.
“W-what on earth is going on here?”
As soon as the market opened, the UK stock market was experiencing a massive crash.
They tried to stabilize it by triggering the circuit breaker in surprise, but it was no use.
“Institutional investors are dumping all their holdings at the same time, as if they coordinated it. Same with the funds.”
“Then why the hell is this happening!”
“Well... we don’t know the reason either.”
“W-what? Are you saying everyone’s selling without any reason at all?”
There’s always some issue behind the rise and fall of the market.
But now, the market was acting like the Great Depression had hit, without anything actually happening.
“Do you think everyone believes a no-deal Brexit is going to happen?”
“That’s not it. We already sent out full notice to all the securities firms. There will absolutely be no no-deal Brexit.”
“Then there’s nothing else. So why the hell is everyone going crazy?”
While no one could give an answer, one person quietly spoke up.
“It’s because of Kwangwoon.”
“What?”
The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s already pale face had turned even whiter.
“I just received the report myself. Apparently, Kwangwoon poured massive amounts of money all at once into products predicting the UK economy would collapse within 72 hours.”
“W-why on earth would they do that?”
“That, we don’t know. The problem is, as that news started to spread, everyone began watching each other, and when only 24 hours remained, all the institutions and funds started dumping their holdings, which led to this situation.”
March couldn’t believe her ears.
So now, just because a single company called Kwangwoon bet that the UK would collapse, everyone got swept up in that and brought things to this point?
“That’s absurd...”
It was so shocking that she couldn’t even finish her sentence.
The problem was, this was reality.
“The biggest issue is the exchange rate. The pound has lost 7% of its value in just a short time. If institutions continue to panic sell like this...”
The Chancellor swallowed dryly and continued.
“We’ll have a second Black Wednesday. And possibly one that’s even bigger.”
The thing British politicians hate most is Wednesday.
That’s because the massive pound short-selling attack led by George Soros in the past is remembered as Black Wednesday.
“So... you’re saying that during my term, and worse than Black Wednesday, a financial crisis could occur?”
“It’s not a matter of ‘could.’ It’s already at our doorstep, Prime Minister. We’re doing everything we can to stabilize things, but this fear is now spreading from institutions to individuals, so effectively...”
The Chancellor couldn’t finish his sentence either.
“That’s why I told you in advance. We never know what Kwangwoon might do. I said we needed to stop them beforehand.”
“.......”
Her aides’ words no longer registered.
No, she didn’t even know how to respond.
Could something like this really happen?
With no actual issue, just because one financial firm in Korea made a bet, that alone caused everyone to panic sell and drive the UK market to collapse?
Really?